Re: [RE-wrenches] Surrette L-16 battereis

[Allan Sindelar]

I should add that my response was not intended to implicitly denigrate Surrette. They are good batteries in general. While I have experienced some failures, they have come through with good support when needed. And they also have Steve Higgins as their technical representative, which is a Major Plus. I have installed and replaced a fair number of L16s over the years, and still do, as they fill a common niche. I use them but dislike them, and this is about their fundamental topology, not specific to any brand. In most cases in homeowners' systems I find that they last about as long as golf carts, seldom longer under similar conditions. Really. They're less forgiving of abuse than golf carts and more expensive per amp-hour. Lots of cells to fill, not a lot of reserve capacity for water, and you can't bypass a single failed cell, so a single string only works in 48V, as you can limp along at 42V while a replacement battery or set is on order, but not at 18V. Both L16s and golf carts make good training batteries, and good replacements when it's time to sell the house with fresh batteries. Otherwise industrial cells are the most cost-effective and long-lasting choice among FLAs, especially when replacement labor (and sometimes freight) are factored in. Allan   Allan Sindelar al...@sindelarsolar.com NABCEP Certified PV Installation Professional NABCEP Certified Technical Sales Professional New Mexico EE98J Journeyman Electrician Founder (Retired), Positive Energy, Inc. 505 780-2738 cell   On 12/15/2015 11:08 AM, Howie Michaelson wrote: While I have no experience with HUP, I do have many years of experience with Rolls/Surrette.  They are a robust battery, and in my opinion superior to Trojan and other mid-line flavors. I am not as adamant about staying away from L16s as Allan, although I'd whole-heartedly agree with keeping to one string wherever possible, and 2 at most. Of course, going to the 2-volt batteries almost always allows for single strings, and give you a much more robust battery, and are often the right choice even for budget conscious clients.  However, they are a much larger investment and take a much more robust charging system.  Sometimes it makes sense to start a new off-gridder on a set of less expensive "training" batteries, depending on your assessment of their learning curve, motivation, and budget. As with all batteries, there are occasional cell failures, likely attributable to manu defects.  But I've found with Rolls, this is less common (except with the T12250 12-volt batteries which I have seen a significant failure rate over with the years).  And I have never had trouble getting batteries covered under warranty from them if I determine that the failure was not likely operator error.  But this is probably dependent upon having a good, trusting relationship with ones supplier, which I've always had with RAE Battery. Howie Howie Michaelson NABCEP Certified Solar PV Installer™ Sun Catcher, LLC Renewable Energy Systems Sales and Service VT Solar Electric Incentive Partner 802-272-0004 On Tue, Dec 15, 2015 at 12:37 PM, Allan Sindelar <al...@sindelarsolar.com> wrote: Drake, Your request is missing specifics so my answer can only be generic. Get away from all L16s. Go to one string of industrial cells. There are numerous well-respected brands. I would put HUPs at about the top. www.hupsolarone.com. Spend some time on this website and it will become more clear. Allan Allan Sindelar al...@sindelarsolar.com NABCEP Certified PV Installation Professional NABCEP Certified Technical Sales Professional New Mexico EE98J Journeyman Electrician Founder (Retired), Positive Energy, Inc. 505 780-2738 cell   On 12/15/2015 9:07 AM, Drake wrote: Hello Wrenches, Even after my clients have learned to maintain their batteries properly, the Trojan L-16 batteries continue to crater, one cell at a time. One client is considering spending $12,000 on a nickel - iron battery bank he found on the web. This seems like a ridiculously large investment, but he is feeling desperate. We urgently need another option from the Trojan L-16s. How are the Surrette L-16s holding up? Would you recommend them as worth the extra investment?  What is the best battery to use in an off grid system these days. Thanks, Drake Drake Chamberlin Athens Electric LLC OH License 44810 CO License 3773 NABCEP Certified Solar PV 740-448-7328 http://athens-electric.com/ This email has been sent from a virus-free computer protected by Avast. www.avast.com _______________________________________________ List sponsored by Redwood Alliance List Address: RE-wrenches@lists.re-wrenches.org Change listserver email address & settings: http://lists.re-wrenches.org/options.cgi/re-wrenches-re-wrenches.org List-Archive: http://www.mail-archive.com/re-wrenches@lists.re-wrenches.org/maillist.html List rules & etiquette: www.re-wrenches.org/etiquette.htm Check out or update participant bios: www.members.re-wrenches.org _______________________________________________ List sponsored by Redwood Alliance List Address: RE-wrenches@lists.re-wrenches.org Change listserver email address & settings: http://lists.re-wrenches.org/options.cgi/re-wrenches-re-wrenches.org List-Archive: http://www.mail-archive.com/re-wrenches@lists.re-wrenches.org/maillist.html List rules & etiquette: www.re-wrenches.org/etiquette.htm Check out or update participant bios: www.members.re-wrenches.org _______________________________________________ List sponsored by Redwood Alliance List Address: RE-wrenches@lists.re-wrenches.org Change listserver email address & settings: http://lists.re-wrenches.org/options.cgi/re-wrenches-re-wrenches.org List-Archive: http://www.mail-archive.com/re-wrenches@lists.re-wrenches.org/maillist.html List rules & etiquette: www.re-wrenches.org/etiquette.htm Check out or update participant bios: www.members.re-wrenches.org

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